Statistics of the British Cinema Industry

Abstract

AT the meeting of the Royal Statistical Society on December 17, Mr. S. Rowson read a paper entitled “A Statistical Survey of the Cinema Industry”. When the figures disclose that in 1934 there were 957 million admission tickets sold for the sum of £40,950,000 (the average price of a ticket thus being 10.3c?.), and when one further considers the character and splendour of the modern cinema together with the fact that four out of every five people visiting the cinema pay not more than one shilling for a ticket, the cinema is shown to be as one of the sociological wonders of the century, meriting attention and investigation. Of the year's revenue from admissions, the Government claimed £6,800,000 in entertainment duty. The average weekly cinema attendance throughout the year is about 18£ millions. At the end of 1934 there were 4,305 cinemas in Great Britain, with an average of 900 seats in each. In the London postal area alone, there were 401 cinemas. Of the various districts Lancashire had the greatest number with 699, Midlands next with 585, and Yorkshire and district next with 534. North Wales had the smallest number with 62 as opposed to 259 in South Wales. In the London area there was one seat for every 14 of the total population; in the Lancashire area one to nine; in the eastern counties one to nineteen; in South Wales one to ten. Eliminating the population under 15 as infrequent cinema-goers the number of persons per seat were: in London, 10.9; in the Eastern Counties, 14; in the Midlands, 9.6; in Yorkshire, 8.0; in Lancashire, 7.0; and in South Wales, 7.6. It will be seen from the foregoing that the problem of redundancy or overbuilding is now becoming serious.